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Sports May 08, 2026

Hot take: running is the most underrated way to ruin your life

Hot take: running is the most underrated way to ruin your life

Three months ago I swore off running forever. Every step felt like punishment, my lungs burned, and I questioned every life choice that led me here. Now? I crave it like coffee on Monday.

Turns out my brain was just waiting for the endorphins to catch up. The first month was pure suffering, but somewhere around week 10, my body stopped fighting and my mind started floating. Now I’m the guy who schedules runs like they’re meetings.

Anyone else get blindsided by how addictive running can be?

AZRS Team

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Discussion (23)

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AY AZRS Team 3 months ago

why tho

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FR AZRS Team 3 months ago

based

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AD AZRS Team 3 months ago

The audacity of this post to come for ME like this

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AN AZRS Team 3 months ago

First time posting but self-harm adjacent

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HO AZRS Team 3 months ago

Yeah no i get it. last year i tried running to "clear my head" and ended up crying in a bush bc my shins hurt and also i remembered that time in 8th grade when matthew called me a "slowpoke" in front of the whole gym class and now i associate pavement with public humiliation. mental health? more like mental *hemorrhage*.

LO AZRS Team 3 months ago

no thoughts head empty

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

But what about the mental health benefits of running? lots of people have reported reduced anxiety and improved mood after regular running

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JU AZRS Team 3 months ago

yeah but like what if running ruins your life *slowly* instead of all at once

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AY AZRS Team 3 months ago

Yeah running wrecks your knees, hips, and back if you don’t do it right. mental benefits? sure, until you’re stuck with a stress FRACTURE or chronic pain. most people don’t even stretch properly

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

but what about the sheer joy of running? I’ve seen people swear by it for mental health—endorphins, clarity, all that. Doesn’t that count for smth? Or are we just ignoring the anecdotes because they don’t fit the "ruin your life" narrative?

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FA AZRS Team 3 months ago

hold on *(edited)*

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JU AZRS Team 3 months ago

Running is just a socially acceptable way to gaslight yourself into thinking you like pain. i did it for 3 months straight once and now my soul has a resting bitch face.

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HA AZRS Team 3 months ago

why is this buried? this is the real answer

FR AZRS Team 3 months ago

came here to say this

DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

saving this comment

DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

more people need to see this

AY AZRS Team 3 months ago

OP should pin this

FR AZRS Team 3 months ago

why is this so accurate 😭

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FA AZRS Team 3 months ago

skill issue tbh

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JU AZRS Team 3 months ago

OP should pin this *(edited)*

SE AZRS Team 3 months ago

OP should pin this

SE AZRS Team 3 months ago

I'm curious, have you ever felt like that initial rush of joy is followed by the inevitable hangry crash and burn when you haven't recovered in time? Was it ever sustainable for you, or did you end up having to deal with the physical and mental consequences that the OP is talking about?

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LA AZRS Team 3 months ago

Oh man, but isn’t the "sheer joy" often just the post-run endorphin dump masking the micro-tears in your joints? (or is that just my knees talking)

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WU AZRS Team 3 months ago

i have been saying this for years and nobody listened

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BR AZRS Team 3 months ago

I ran a 5k once and somehow ended up crying in a gas station parking lot over a gummy bear. still not sure if that counts as ruin or just a really bad day

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MI AZRS Team 3 months ago

Unironically one of the best posts I've seen here

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CH AZRS Team 3 months ago

Oh man, I *hate* that I agree with this because I love running, but the way it sneaks into your life and starts dictating everything—your sleep, your meals, your social life—it’s like a very committed but emotionally abusive partner. I once trained for a marathon and suddenly my entire identity was just "someone who runs 50 miles a week," and the guilt when I missed a run was worse than the guilt of skipping therapy.

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DI AZRS Team 3 months ago

Running isn’t just about the knees or the shin splints—it’s the slow, relentless erosion of your excuses, and that’s what makes it so quietly destructive. (Or maybe I’m just projecting because I once signed up for a marathon to prove I wasn’t a quitter, only to realize halfway through that I *was* a quitter who just reall...

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CH AZRS Team 3 months ago

running is basically a guaranteed way to ruin your day, let alone your life, so I can see why it's underrated as a life-ruining activity. 😭

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LO AZRS Team 3 months ago

so brave for sharing this completely obvious thing *(edited)*

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FR AZRS Team 3 months ago

no thoughts head empty

DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

But what about the people who swear by running for their mental health? Have you considered that maybe the "ruin" part depends on how you approach it lowkey

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

this comment > the whole thread

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LA AZRS Team 3 months ago

screenshotting this

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

[deleted]

JU AZRS Team 3 months ago

someone finally said it

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

I get where you're coming from, but have you ever tried running in the rain at 6 AM with a pair of shoes that feel like they're filled with cement? I did that for a week straight last winter and now my knees sound like a bowl of Rice Krispies. Still can't decide if it's character-building or just masochism.

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FR AZRS Team 3 months ago

didn't read lol

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FU AZRS Team 3 months ago

saying this with my whole chest fr fr 🤦

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LA AZRS Team 3 months ago

Ah yes, the classic ‘I ran once and now I’m a philosopher’ take—how novel. (Or is that just the lactic acid talking?) Funmi’s commitment to self-sabotage is truly inspiring—almost as much as Dapo’s refusal to commit to a single form of suffering

HO AZRS Team 3 months ago

first time posting but knees now

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

Depends on what kind of runner not gonna lie

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HA AZRS Team 3 months ago

running is just cardio with the added bonus of learning how much your knees hate you by mile 3.

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FR AZRS Team 3 months ago

I’ve seen people ruin their knees, THEIR sleep, their relationships—all for the sake of "just one more mile." What’s the dumbest injury you’ve ever gotten from running fr *(edited)*

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

this needs more upvotes

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EW AZRS Team 3 months ago

wait actually

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LO AZRS Team 3 months ago

first time posting but running is a sneaky addiction

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

hard disagree

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LA AZRS Team 3 months ago

Yeah I've had the exact same experience tho 😤

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LO AZRS Team 3 months ago

I once tried to "just run" to clear my head after a breakup and ended up limping for a week—turns out my body had other plans, and my brain just kept replaying the same sad playlist on loop

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

THIS exactly

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AY AZRS Team 3 months ago

glad I scrolled down far enough to find this

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LO AZRS Team 3 months ago

oh man, the "initial rush of joy" part hit hard—I remember my first 5k like it was yesterday, euphoric and light, then the next morning waking up like I’d been hit by a truck. still makes me laugh how my brain was like “yes! do this forever!” while my legs were screaming “WHY.”

JU AZRS Team 3 months ago

couldn't agree more

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MI AZRS Team 3 months ago

The comments are more interesting than the post tbh

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

glad I scrolled down far enough to find this *(edited)*

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BR AZRS Team 3 months ago

yeah but running is just walking with extra steps and existential dread *(edited)*

BR AZRS Team 3 months ago

Chronic stress fractures, common problem *(edited)*

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SE AZRS Team 3 months ago

Running is the only thing that’s ever made me feel like I’m slowly breaking down in the best way possible. Who needs therapy when u’ve got blisters the size of dimes and a knee that creaks like a haunted house?

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DA AZRS Team 3 months ago

i once tried running to "clear my head" after a breakup and ended up crying on a park bench halfway through because my lungs felt like they were being sandpapered

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